Clover vs Toast 2026: Pricing, Hardware and Lock-In

Clover is the better buy for most restaurants that want a price they can read in full: every Clover restaurant bundle runs at 2.3% + 10¢ per in-person card with Restaurant Growth software at $89.95 a month, hardware from $849. Toast wins when you need to start with no cash upfront: its Starter Kit costs $0 in hardware and software but charges 3.09% + 15¢ per card, under a 2-year agreement.

Our take: this is a choice between two kinds of lock-in. Clover asks for money upfront and keeps the rate low; Toast removes the upfront bill and earns it back on every card, then binds you with approved-only hardware and a 2-year software term. A café doing a few thousand dollars a month can come out ahead on Toast. A busy dining room almost never does on Toast's pay-as-you-go rates.

Prices were read on 19 October 2026 on Clover's full-service restaurant pricing, quick-service restaurant pricing, retail pricing and pricing FAQ, and on Toast's pricing page, Starter Kits page and Countertop Starter Kit configurator.

Toolradar data: among the 35 restaurant POS tools tracked on Toolradar, the software directory we run, Toast POS is listed as an alternative to 38 other tools, the most in the category, while Clover Dining is listed against 4, as of October 2026. Toast is the system buyers shop against; Clover is more often the one they already have through their bank.

Clover vs Toast at a glance

Question	Clover	Toast	Edge
In-person card rate	2.3% + 10¢ on every restaurant bundle	3.09% + 15¢ (Basic), 3.39% (Core), 3.69% (Growth) on the Starter Kit; 2.49% + 15¢ on Traditional	Clover
Keyed-in card rate	3.5% + 10¢	3.5% + 15¢ on Traditional	Clover
Restaurant software	Restaurant Growth on every bundle, fee per bundle below	No software fee on the Starter Kit; Point of Sale from $69/mo	Toast on the sticker
Cheapest restaurant hardware	Mini bundle, $849	Countertop Starter Kit, no upfront cost	Toast
Device payment plan	36-month subscription, non-cancelable	0% financing by application	Toast
Software term	No term printed for an outright online purchase; 3 years with the $450 credit	2-year agreement	Depends on the offer you take
Use the hardware elsewhere	No, Clover devices work only with Clover processing	No, Toast runs only on Toast-approved devices	Tie

Toast says its published prices apply to new customers and single locations only. Clover says its online prices are only available on clover.com and that banks reselling Clover set their own terms, so a quote from either can differ from this table.

How much does each cost per card?

Clover charges less on every in-person card than Toast's no-subscription kit. Toast's Basic package is 0.79 points higher on the percentage and 5¢ higher on the flat fee. On a dinner check the size of the full-service scenario below, that gap is about 45¢ per card; on the café's lunch ticket it is about 13¢, which adds up fast at counter volume.

Toast's lower rate lives on its Traditional plan. You buy hardware upfront, pay a monthly software fee from $69, and process at 2.49% + 15¢ per in-person card (3.5% + 15¢ keyed in), the rate Toast prints in its own card reader guide, read on 19 October 2026. That sits 0.19 points and 5¢ above Clover's rate on every card.

Clover's flat rate has one asterisk. Rapid Deposit, which moves card money to your bank within minutes, costs 1.75% of each deposit, so a restaurant that wants same-day cash pays far more than the headline rate on those deposits.

Which restaurant bundle includes what?

Clover sells restaurants three fixed bundles per service style, all on Restaurant Growth software at the same card rate.

Clover bundle (Oct 2026)	Hardware	Upfront + monthly	Or subscription
Quick service, Starter	Mini, built-in printer	$849 + $89.95/mo	$135/mo for 36 months
Quick service, Standard	Station Duo	$1,899 + $89.95/mo	$185/mo for 36 months
Quick service, Advanced	Station Duo + Flex	$2,648 + $109.90/mo	$245/mo for 36 months
Full service, Starter	Station Solo	$1,799 + $89.95/mo	$179/mo for 36 months
Full service, Standard	Station Solo + Flex	$2,548 + $109.90/mo	$239/mo for 36 months
Full service, Advanced	Station Solo + Flex + Station Duo	$4,447 + $129.85/mo	$354/mo for 36 months

Two gaps hide in the cheapest bundles. The full-service Starter's Station Solo cannot take tapped cards or Apple Pay, which Clover lists as Flex-only on Standard. The quick-service Starter on a Mini leaves out the customer database, loyalty, promotions and gift cards, which arrive on Standard. Both are cheap on paper and expensive the first week a guest tries to tap a phone.

Toast's Countertop Starter Kit ships a 14-inch Toast Flex terminal, a Toast Tap payment device and a router at no upfront cost. You pick a feature package: Basic adds reporting and 24/7 support at 3.09% + 15¢, Core adds online ordering with DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub integrations at 3.39%, and Growth adds gift cards, loyalty, SMS and email marketing, websites and catering at 3.69%. Clover includes no-fee online ordering and third-party menu integrations in every restaurant bundle.

What the monthly bill looks like for two restaurants

Both scenarios apply each vendor's printed in-person rate, flat fee and software fee to one location. Toast Traditional is shown without its hardware purchase, which Toast quotes rather than prints.

A counter-service café: $20,000 a month across 2,000 cards ($10 average ticket).

Setup	Hardware upfront	Monthly cost	Year-one total
Clover quick-service Starter (Mini)	$849	$749.95	$9,848.40
Clover Compact on Starter software (retail bundle)	$349	$720	$8,989
Toast Starter Kit, Basic	$0	$918	$11,016
Toast Starter Kit, Core (online ordering)	$0	$978	$11,736
Toast Point of Sale, Traditional	Not printed	$867	Not computable

Clover's Mini bundle saves $168 a month against Toast Basic at this volume, and over the year that covers the Mini's purchase price and still leaves $1,167.60. The Compact row is Clover's free Starter software, which carries a higher card rate; Clover sells it as a retail bundle, not on its restaurant pages, so check that its features cover your menu before choosing it to save money.

Toast Traditional, at $867 a month with its 15¢ per card, costs $117.05 a month more than the Mini bundle, before any hardware bill. Volume decides the rest. By our arithmetic at a $10 ticket, Toast's Basic kit is cheaper per month than Clover's Mini bundle only below about $7,000 in monthly card sales.

A full-service dining room: $60,000 a month across 1,200 cards ($50 average ticket), one counter terminal plus one handheld.

Setup	Hardware upfront	Monthly cost	Year-one total
Clover full-service Standard, bought outright	$2,548	$1,609.90	$21,866.80
Clover full-service Standard, 36-month subscription	$0	$1,739	$20,868
Toast Countertop Starter Kit, Basic, plus a Toast Go 3	$599	$2,084	$25,607
Toast Point of Sale, Traditional, plus a Toast Go 3	Not printed	$1,793	Not computable

On the printed numbers, Clover wins this room on every line. Toast's pay-as-you-go kit costs $474 a month more than Clover Standard, almost all of it in the higher rate. Toast Traditional lands $183.10 a month above Clover before hardware, so no quote can make it cheaper unless Toast also cuts the 2.49% or the handheld's monthly fee, which the configurator charges on every Toast Go 3.

The subscription row deserves a second look. It wins year one because nothing is paid upfront, but over the full 36 months it totals $8,604 against $6,504.40 for buying the same Station Solo and Flex outright and paying software monthly, by our arithmetic. That $2,099.60 buys Clover's Equipment Protection Program, which covers accidental damage and theft for the length of the term.

Contracts and lock-in

Toast's software subscription carries a 2-year agreement, per its configurator, and recurring charges begin the day you go live. Toast says its services run only on devices it identifies as compatible, so a Toast terminal is useless on another system and your iPad will not run Toast.

Clover's lock-in sits in the hardware and the bank. Clover's FAQ says its subscriptions are non-cancelable and not refundable, and that a term you let lapse rolls on month to month at the same charge unless you give 30 days' notice. Its devices cannot be moved to another payment processor, even when bought from someone else. The $450 statement credit Clover advertises for buying a Station, Mini or Flex online requires a 3-year contract and $10,000 in card sales in the first four billing cycles.

Clover is also sold through Citi, PNC, Wells Fargo and more than 1,000 other financial institutions, and its FAQ says contract terms and termination fees vary by provider. A Clover system from your bank may carry a different rate and an early-termination fee that the clover.com price never shows. Ask for the merchant agreement before the device ships.

What does the hardware cost?

Device	Clover	Toast (configurator, Oct 2026)
Counter terminal	Station Solo bundle, $1,799 with cash drawer and receipt printer	14-inch Toast Flex with stand, $749 + $50/mo
Counter terminal with customer screen	Station Duo bundle, $1,899	8-inch Toast Flex guest wedge, $299
Compact counter device	Mini bundle (priced above); Compact, $349	Toast Tap, $99
Handheld for tableside orders	Adds $749 to a Station bundle (Standard vs Starter)	Toast Go 3 (Wi-Fi), $599 + $50/mo
Kitchen	Kitchen printer sold as an accessory	14-inch Flex kitchen display, $749 + $35/mo; kitchen printer, $339

Toast's monthly device fees are the cost that never ends. Toast's footnote says each plan includes the first terminal subscription and charges for every device after it, so three handhelds on a patio add $150 a month for as long as they run. Clover's extra devices raise the software line instead: the Standard full-service bundle's $109.90 is $19.95 above the single-device Starter. Toast also advertises 60% off hardware for a limited time, which cuts the purchase price but not those monthly fees.

Clover vs Toast for a retail store

Retailers have a clearer answer. Clover's retail page sells a Compact on the free Starter plan for $349 at 2.6% + 10¢, and a Station Duo on Retail Growth for $1,899 plus $84.95 a month, at the same rate its restaurant bundles charge. Toast's retail Point of Sale starts at $90 a month and its page prints no card rate, so a convenience or liquor store cannot budget it without a sales call. The full Clover retail ladder is in our Clover pricing breakdown, and the best POS for liquor stores list covers stores Toast now targets.

Which should you pick?

• Counter-service café or bakery above about $7,000 a month in card sales. Clover's quick-service Standard if you want loyalty and gift cards, Starter on a Mini if you do not. The rate gap pays for the hardware within months.
• New concept with no cash for hardware. Toast's Starter Kit, knowing the higher rate is how you pay for the free kit, then move to Traditional as volume grows.
• Full-service restaurant. Clover Standard on the printed numbers. Get a Toast Traditional quote only if you want Toast's payroll, scheduling and delivery tooling, and sign the 2-year term only if its quoted rate and device fees beat the table above.
• Retail store. Clover, for a printed rate on every plan.
• Restaurant offered Clover by its bank. Compare the bank's merchant agreement against the clover.com bundle before signing; the online price is often the benchmark you need.

Read next

Each system on its own: the Clover review, the Toast POS review and the full Toast POS pricing breakdown. If Square is on your shortlist too, Toast vs Square prices the same kind of restaurant, and Square POS pricing lists Square's rates. The cost of a POS across every major vendor is in how much a POS system costs, the wider field sits in the best POS systems ranking, coffee counters have their own best POS for coffee shops list, and rewards tools are compared in best loyalty program software.

How we compared

We read Clover's full-service restaurant, quick-service restaurant and retail pricing pages and its pricing FAQ, and Toast's pricing page, Starter Kits page, Countertop Starter Kit configurator and the card reader guide that prints its Traditional rate, all on 19 October 2026. The scenario totals are our arithmetic on those published rates, fees and hardware prices, not quotes, and they leave out tax, keyed-in sales, accessories and anything a vendor does not print. The category figures come from Toolradar's restaurant POS statistics. Louis Corneloup, founder of Toolradar and Dupple, is the author. Rates and promotions change, so re-check both vendors' pages before you sign.

FAQ

Is Clover or Toast better in 2026?

Clover is better for most restaurants and every retail store that wants printed pricing: all its restaurant bundles run at 2.3% + 10¢ per in-person card. Toast is better for a new restaurant with no money for hardware, since its Starter Kit costs nothing upfront, and for operators who want Toast's restaurant suite and can negotiate its Traditional plan.

Is Toast cheaper than Clover?

Only at low volume or upfront. Toast's Starter Kit has no hardware or software bill, but its 3.09% + 15¢ rate costs more per card than Clover's, so by our arithmetic a café with a $10 average ticket pays less on Toast only below about $7,000 a month in card sales.

Does Clover charge a monthly fee for restaurants?

Yes. Every Clover restaurant bundle runs Restaurant Growth software, with a monthly fee that rises with each device, up to $129.85 on the three-device full-service bundle. Clover's free Starter software appears on its retail bundles, not its restaurant ones.

Do Clover and Toast require a contract?

Toast's software subscription comes with a 2-year agreement. Clover's 36-month device subscriptions are non-cancelable, its $450 statement credit requires a 3-year contract, and bank-sold Clover accounts set their own terms and termination fees.

Can I use Clover hardware with Toast, or Toast hardware elsewhere?

No in both directions. Toast runs only on devices it approves, and Clover's FAQ says Clover devices cannot be used with other payment processors, even when bought from a third party.

Which has better hardware for tableside ordering?

Both sell a handheld. Clover's Flex comes in its Standard and Advanced bundles and is the only device in the full-service Standard bundle that takes tapped cards. Toast's Go 3 costs $599 plus $50 a month per device on top of any Toast plan.

Cite this: Retailpresso, "Clover vs Toast 2026: Pricing, Hardware and Lock-In", November 2026.

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